West Asian conflicts must not overshadow Palestine issue: Qatar

Doha: Qatar has urged the international community not to allow continuing conflicts in the Gulf region to overshadow the Palestinian issue, warning that meaningful action is essential to protect the rights of the Palestinian people.

Qatar’s permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Jassim Yaqoub Al Hammadi, stressed the need to implement international resolutions guaranteeing Palestinians the right to self-determination and an independent state.

He argued that Israel’s continued refusal to implement such resolutions has been encouraged by the absence of effective consequences. According to Qatar, only concrete international action can change the situation and ensure Palestinian rights.

Doha also linked the implementation of international resolutions to broader regional stability, saying it could help realise Palestinian self-determination while advancing efforts to establish a nuclear-weapon-free Middle East.

Qatar strongly condemned Israeli moves and proposals aimed at forcibly displacing Palestinians. It particularly criticised statements by Israeli ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Israel Katz advocating the complete removal of Palestinians, describing such positions as violations of international law.

The Gulf state also stressed that the Gaza Strip is an integral part of the occupied Palestinian territory, rejecting any attempt to separate the enclave from the broader Palestinian state.

Qatar reiterated its position that lasting peace in the Middle East can only be achieved through the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

It said resolving the Palestinian question through internationally recognised principles remains essential for achieving lasting peace and stability across the region.